Debt

The travails of a duty-bound husband and father who works in an economically struggling print shop are conveyed with humor and pathos in this beautifully performed Turkish film. Tufan is a basically kindhearted fellow who takes in a neighbor with emphysema and helps his daughter nurse a wounded crow. But as tensions at work rise and the increasingly sickly houseguest begins to strain his marriage, Tufan begins to wonder if trying to live a life that is just and good is worth the trouble. Winner, Best Film, Istanbul Film Festival.

“[Debt] takes is strength from its authenticity, and it embraces a documentary-like reality. In a very natural way, the film tells the story of a middle-class family and the people in their lives in Eskişehir, Central Turkey; it’s like they set up a camera in a real family’s home and just started filming their lives. The authentic environment created in the film is largely due to Saraçoğlu’s spot-on casting choices and the actors’ excellent performances. There is no doubt that Saraçoğlu is a keen observer. She accurately reflects her characters’ mentalities, behaviors, ways of speaking, social lives, and how they relate to shopkeepers, neighbors, and friends.”—Alin Taşçıyan, Ahval